Kansas basketball: Front court comes up big in West Virginia

The Kansas basketball team won another big conference road game Monday. The Jayhawk front court played a critical role in the 71-66 win over West Virginia.

Kansas basketball fans are still celebrating the Jayhawks come from behind win in Morgantown. Last season’s unbelievable rally to overcome a 14-point deficit at Allen Fieldhouse over the Mountaineers was one for the ages. That finish was impossible. On the other hand, Monday night’s Jayhawk rally in Morgantown might be ever more impressive.

As a matter of fact, every member of the team contributed in a big way. However, the Jayhawk front court may have been the difference. That is not to take anything away from Devonte Graham’s leadership, 16-points, 6-assists and two steals. Svi Mykhailiuk also had a huge performance. He fought for 4 rebounds, hit 4 big free throws in the closing minutes and scored 17-points.

Since the season opener and no Billy Preston, Jayhawk fans and Hall of Fame coach Bill Self have worried about front court depth. The Jayhawk big men Udokah Azubuike, Mitch Lightfoot and Silvio DeSousa were outstanding in the Big Monday matchup of Top-10 teams. All three contributed important minutes.

Going into the game, we knew the Mountaineers were a weak shooting team but also led the Big 12 in rebounding. If the Jayhawks didn’t match Huggins’ guys on the glass they couldn’t win.  As expected, Mountaineers struggled shooting. As a matter of fact, they hit just 40 percent of their shots including a mediocre18 percent from beyond the arc.

Jayhawks had a big night on the glass

With all those missed shots, the Kansas front court came through on the glass. Udokah Azubuike, Mitch Lightfoot and Silvio De Sousa combined for 17 of the Jayhawk’s 35 rebounds. The trio also contributed 18 points and picked up a pair of steals.

Newcomer De Sousa played just 7-minutes of the first half. He looked much more comfortable than he did during his debut in the Sunflower Showdown. The 6-foot-9 freshman made a nice move in the paint to score his first points as a Jayhawk. He also was active on defense and blocked out to grab 3 rebounds.

Lightfoot only played 11 minutes but none more important than the final minute when he replaced Azubuike. Lightfoot, the hero of the victory in Fort Worth was active on defense and didn’t give up on a shot, grabbed the rebound and was credited for a dunk. That put the Jayhawks up 3 with 48 seconds left.

Next: Jayhawks shock Mountaineers in Morgantown

The Jayhawks are better when their starting big man is on the court. Foul trouble limited Azubuike to 20-minutes Monday but made the most of it. He scored 10 points on 5-5 shooting and just missed a double-double with 9 rebounds. The Jayhawk front court is far from perfect but vastly improved. Just wait ‘til Preston joins the party.